Back to School
by lurkermostly
Summary: Emily, or Coach Fields to her students, is a member of the staff at Rosewood High. She has settled into a relatively content (although boring) life in her hometown. However a new resident to the town may shake her boring life up a bit (or a lot).


Author's Note: I plan to make this a fairly long multi-chapter story. Stay tuned!

* * *

Emily was trotting down the steps of her childhood home when something in her peripheral vision caught her eye. She looked towards Alison's house. Even after all of these years and multiple changes of ownership, the home had always remained 'Alison Dilaurentis' house' in Emily's mind. However, in the real world the property's latest incarnation was a rooming house. Or what Emily's mother not so affectionately referred to as 'the hippie house.' From what Emily understood, by way of a posting online, it was a sort of communal living space for twenty-somethings. The residents of the home didn't quite sing kumbaya by the fireside, but there were assigned chores and regular roommate meetings.

The person who caught her eye must have been a new roommate because Emily had never seen her before and in Rosewood unfamiliar people were a rare occurrence. Emily looked at the young woman, who was juggling a few overly full boxes and bags, trying to steady the items with her chin. She took in the stranger's form. The caramel skinned young woman was petite but athletic. She was wearing tights with an incredibly distracting pattern. If the pattern weren't so distracting the curve of the woman's hips and thighs in the tights would have been. The new resident was also wearing calf high leather boots which were entirely inappropriate for the season, a turquoise tank top, a vest and an assortment of bracelets and bangles. A slouchy knit hat covered her shoulder length wavy hair.

Emily tossed her keys from one hand to the other in thought. She should really head home and work on her lesson plans, but seeing the woman struggle to balance the load, she decided to lend a hand. Who was she to deny assistance to a gorgeous damsel in distress? Emily began making her way to her parents' new neighbor.

"Do you need some help?" Emily called out a few feet from the other woman.

"No thanks. I think I've got it." The woman called back without turning her head.

Just then one of the more fragile items perilously perched on top of the woman's stack began making its descent towards the ground.

Emily reflexively reached out and caught the item with both hands.

"Thank you! I don't know how I would've explained having to scrape my great aunt's ashes back into that vase to my mother. Talk about awkward." The young woman said.

Emily's face reflected equal parts relief that she had saved the ashes from hitting the ground and horror that she was now holding a person's remains.

The stranger finally took a look at her helper. She noticed that Emily was tall and athletically built. Her ridiculously fit arms were accentuated by a short-sleeved workout top while her endlessly long toned legs were highlighted by very short shorts. Emily's long dark hair was pulled away from her face in a ponytail. When the stranger finally reached Emily's dark brown eyes she saw shock reflected in them. The stranger then realized she had spent a second too long ogling her companion. Time that she should have spent apologizing for her lame attempt at a joke.

"I'm kidding! I'm so sorry there's nothing in there. I have a morbid sense of humor." She apologized profusely.

Emily's expression turned into the most adorable smirk and sideways glance.

"No it's ok, it was kind of funny." She placed deliberate emphasis on the words 'kind of.'

The new Rosewood resident smiled.

"I think I'll take you up on that offer to help…" She trailed off expectedly.

"Emily." Emily filled in while lifting the top box from her companion's arms.

"It's very nice to meet you Emily. I'm Maya. I would shake your hand but as you can see my arms are a bit full at the moment." Maya said walking from her car and toward the stairs of the home.

"Well let's get you unloaded then. I have to say, I'm surprised you fit so much stuff into such a small car." Emily said while climbing the stairs to the porch.

"What can I say? I'm a very efficient packer and mover." Maya shrugged.

The two women trailed through the house.

Emily stopped suddenly in the living room. It was very odd. She had not been in the house in years, but she still felt Ali's presence. Somehow, even in death Alison managed to have the omniscient presence she had perfected in her short life.

Noticing that the footfalls behind her had stopped, Maya turned to Emily in concern.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah," Emily nodded, "I'm fine. I had a friend who lived here a long time ago. She went missing while we were in high school. Her body was found about a year later."

"I'm sorry Emily." Maya said with sincerity.

"It's ok, like I said, it was a long time ago." Emily gave her a sad smile.

"So where's your room?" Emily said, changing the subject.

Maya laughed turning away, "Why Emily, we've only just met and you're already inviting yourself up to my room?"

Emily's ears burned red. "I just, uh, meant we should, um, probably unload your things before it, uh, gets dark."

"Relax, Em. I was only kidding." Maya chuckled again. "It's up the stairs and to the left. Follow me."

All of Emily's friends addressed her using the nickname 'Em' from time to time, but coming from Maya it sounded more intimate to Emily's ears. Emily smiled at the thought.

"So do you help all of your neighbors move in?" Maya said glancing back at her helper with a smile while lugging her things up the stairs.

"Only the cute ones." Emily quipped. She surprised herself with the flirting, but she got a vibe from Maya. A good vibe. "I actually don't live in this neighborhood anymore. I was just visiting my parents."

Not to be outdone, Maya quipped back, "Well, had I known Rosewood had such attractive and helpful residents I would have moved here sooner."

They arrived at the room and deposited the items, then made their way back down to the car for the next load.

The two began unloading boxes from Maya's trunk.

Making conversation Emily asked, "So what brings you to Rosewood?"

"Work." Maya said cryptically, not wanting to reveal too much. Although Emily was beautiful she could have been a serial killer for all Maya knew. A beautiful potential serial killer who already knew where she lived.

"And what made you choose to live in this house?" Emily continued. She wanted to know a little more about the young woman, partly because she was cute of course, but also because she wanted to make sure her parents' weren't living near a mass murderer.

"I picked it because it reminds me of the houses I lived in after college. Shared housing spaces have always appealed to me because I never had to worry about packing up a whole place when I was ready to move on. Now I'm not sure if I can handle the drifter lifestyle anymore. Maybe I'll put down some roots. I may actually even buy a table or something."

"What brought about the change of heart?" Emily questioned curiously.

"Maybe it's because I'm getting older or maybe there might be something or someone in this town worth sticking around for." Maya smiled in Emily's direction.

It took several trips, and it was in fact dark by the time they finished, but they finally moved all of Maya's belongings from the car to the house.

Maya insisted on walking Emily back downstairs after they were done with the last load.

"Thanks for the help, Em. I'd invite you out to show my appreciation, but I have to be up early for work and I don't know any places in this town anyway." Maya said shrugging.

"You don't have to thank me, I was happy to help. But, I'd be more than happy to show you around town sometime."

"That would be great," Maya pulled out her phone. "What's your number?"

Emily gave Maya her number and Maya immediately sent a text to her.

"And now you have my number." Maya grinned.

Emily grinned back. Their eyes locked briefly and they each looked away shyly.

For a while they stood facing each other on the sidewalk awkwardly.

"Well I should go." Emily said softly.

"Yeah, me too." Maya said in an equally soft voice.

Emily felt an overwhelming need to hug the person she had met only hours ago, so she leaned in to do just that. Instead, she felt the gentle press of Maya's lips on her cheek.

Maya pulled away. "See you later Em." She gave a small wave and headed towards her new home.

Emily began to walk to her car with a smile plastered on her face.

xxxxxx

Emily speed walked down the main hallway of Rosewood High School while reviewing her roster. Maya walked more slowly in front of Emily, traveling in the opposite direction, studying a map of the building and trying to figure out how to get to the band room. They collided directly into each other.

"I'm so sorry," they both began apologizing, without looking up from the papers they were engrossed in. However, when they recognized each other's voices they immediately looked up.

"Hi." Emily tilted her head in confusion.

"Hey." Maya replied, equally confused.

"What are you…?" They asked at the same time.

"I'm the gym teacher and the swim coach here, what about you?" Emily said.

"New assistant music director." Maya replied. "I'm actually really glad I bumped into you. Well not literally," she laughed, "I'm having the hardest time finding the band room."

"Oh, it's down this way." Emily said leading Maya in the right direction.

"Thank you so much Em. Sorry, I guess I should call you Miss or coach something right?"

Emily laughed. "Coach Fields. It's only required in front of the kids though."

"Ok, Coach Fields." Maya smirked. "I guess I should get used to hearing Miss St. Germain then."

"Miss St. Germain." Maya said again, mostly to herself, with her mouth distorted in mild disgust. "Hearing that gives me flashbacks of being in the principal's office when I was in high school." She shuddered dramatically.

Emily laughed, "Don't worry you'll get used to it. Is this your first teaching position?"

"It's my first formal, full-time teaching position. I taught on a per diem or temporary basis at camps, recreation and community centers and after school programs back home. What about you? How long have you been at Rosewood High?"

"I actually graduated from here. But this is my third year on staff. Here we are." Emily gestured toward the band room.

They stopped in front of the room. Maya peeked in. Although there weren't any students in the room yet, she was still very nervous.

Emily sensed her anxiety. She placed her hand on the new teacher's shoulder. "I know the first day of school seems scary, especially when you're the new kid in town, but you'll do great and I'm certain the kids will love you. Just relax and be yourself." Emily smiled softly and removed her hand, but Maya still felt a tingle where Emily's hand had been.

"Thank you Em, err, I mean Coach Fields."

"No problem. I have to set up for my first class but I'll see you around ok?" Emily grinned at her reassuringly.

"Ok." Maya nodded. She still mentally braced herself before entering the room, but she was comforted by Emily's words.

xxxxxx

Maya entered the teacher's lounge hesitantly. From previous experience she knew that high school students could be intimidating, but teachers could be absolutely vicious when they wanted to be. She made a beeline for the drink machine, hoping to grab a bottle of water and exit the room before any of the other members of the faculty or staff tried to engage her in conversation.

She was happily surprised to find Emily plunking her own change into the machine.

"Hi Coach Fields!" Maya said excitedly.

"Oh, hi Maya! You can call me by my first name when we're in the teacher's lounge." Emily chuckled. "I'm happy to see you made it through your first morning at Rosewood High. How did it go?"

"It went very well. You were right, the students seem to like me and I feel like I'll be able to do a lot of new and exciting things with the band this year."

"That's great! Hey, what are you doing for lunch? Do you want to sit with me?"

"Sure!" Maya laughed, "This feels exactly like high school all over again."

"It is a little surreal sometimes." Emily agreed.

They took a seat at one of the round tables in the lounge.

"So Maya, what made you pick Rosewood High School?"

"I didn't really. If it were my choice I would have stayed in Cali. But the economy's so bad and school districts there look at music programs as luxury items. So I moved across the country for the assistant music director position here."

"Is this what you saw yourself doing at this point in your life?"

"Not really. I thought I'd be a rock star." Maya laughed a little but there was a look of distant longing in her eyes. "But I like working with the kids and I love making music. What about you Emily? Why are you still here?"

"Well I did go away for college. And I lived in Philly with friends for a couple years after undergrad, but my mom had a health scare so I came back to be with my parents. I've been here ever since."

"Is your mom better now?"

"Yes, much better actually. Thank you for asking."

They chatted for a bit longer about general topics like which students and members of the staff to look out for. For two people who had met just the day before, they found it surprisingly easy to talk to each other.

Their conversation only stopped when the bell rang.

"I guess we should get going to our next classes." Maya said.

They rose reluctantly.

"It was really nice talking you. Perhaps we could make this an every lunch period thing?" Emily said hopefully.

"Sure. I'd like that." Maya smiled. "Hopefully my afternoon goes as well as my morning. Wish me luck."

"You'll be fine, just be yourself." Emily reassured her again.

xxxxxx

It was like déjà vu as Emily watched Maya simultaneously juggle her coffee, an assortment of files and a messenger bag while attempting to unlock her car door.

Without asking this time, Emily approached Maya and grabbed the coffee and files, so that Maya's hands were free to unlock the door.

"We have to stop meeting like this." Emily joked.

Maya laughed. "Thank you again. Actually thank you for the millionth time in the past 24 hours. I owe you big time." Maya placed her bag on the passenger sit and accepted her coffee cup and files from Emily. Their fingertips grazed in the exchange causing them to lock eyes for a moment and then look away.

Emily cleared her throat breaking the silence, "You don't owe me anything. I'm happy to help."

"I insist. Let's go for drinks tonight. My treat."

Emily relented rather quickly. She wasn't very interested in getting drinks but she was interested in getting the chance to spend more time with her new colleague.

"Alright, I know this great place downtown. I'll text you the address. Do you want to meet me there in an hour?" Emily suggested.

"It's a date!" Maya winked and hopped into the car.

After watching Maya's car pull away, Emily walked across the parking lot towards her own car with the word's "it's a date" running through her head.

* * *

**Thoughts? Suggestions?**


End file.
